The Boston Celtics have left fans with a heap of questions this year, but trading for C.J. McCollum could be the answer.
The Boston Celtics are poised for change.
The NBA season is nearly halfway over, and the Celtics are still a puzzle that most fans just can’t figure out. It’s inconceivable, after all, that the same team that took a then-undefeated Golden State Warriors team to a double-overtime thriller just a few weeks earlier would then kick off the new year with back-to-back losses at the hands of the Los Angeles Lakers (9-32) and the lowly Brooklyn Nets (11-28).
Though, that has been the Celtics’ season in a nutshell; the team plays up to tough opponents, and falls to subpar competition in so-called “trap games”, which have become a recognized and dangerous entity in the NBA sphere.
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This Celtics team has continued to establish chemistry over the past two seasons, and — with only minimal roster changes — has gone from just a sum of miscellaneous parts to a bonafide playoff contender.
Unfortunately though, contending for the playoffs — not the NBA championship — appears to be this group’s ceiling. The Celtics were on the rise last year, and it seemed as though time would just continue to make this team better.
But now, 39 games into the 2015-16 season, with the Celtics just one tick over .500 (20-19, ninth in the East), one can’t help but to think that this team — as it was last year — is no better than average.
And really, it’s a talent thing.
Isaiah Thomas and Jae Crowder have emerged as the Celtics’ top-dogs, but even when they play their best, it’s not always enough. Look no further than the Celtics’ two most recent two losses, first to the Memphis Grizzlies, then the New York Knicks; Thomas and Crowder combined for 45 and 55 points, respectively, and the Cs were still unable to hold it together down the stretch.
Brad Stevens is hailed as one of the Association’s best head coaches, but without a real “go-to” guy, a team is only as good as the system it plays in. Stevens has architected a functional offense that’s oriented around perimeter movement, but for every possession that doesn’t see by-the-book and flawless execution, the Cs come up empty.
Luckily for Boston, the Feb. 18 trade deadline approaches, and general manager Danny Ainge is as ready as they come to make a move; Boston has countless assets it could put on the table this year, both draft picks and young prospects alike.
The team could go all-out and throw everything they have for someone like DeMarcus Cousins, but perhaps the better option would be to continue to slowly and methodically build the roster, the way Ainge has done so for the past few seasons.
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One under-the-radar name that would fit the aforementioned rebuilding blueprint perfectly is third-year guard C.J. McCollum, who is currently putting together a monstrous season for the Portland Trail Blazers.
After playing behind Wesley Matthews for his entire career, McCollum is now averaging 20.8 points per game as the Blazers’ starting two-guard, and doing it efficiently, too. A field goal percentage of .435 is nothing to write home about, but his .394 conversion clip from the outside is a head-turner for sure.
On the surface, we see a budding scoring guard who plays sidekick to bonafide superstar Damian Lillard. But as Oregon Live’s John Canzano discussed earlier this week, McCollum’s fit in Portland isn’t optimal:
"CJ McCollum (20.9 points per game) is putting together a nice bounce-back season. At $2.5 million annually he’s currently a terrific value. But anyone who has watched McCollum play when paired with Damian Lillard knows that you can’t play them successfully together on a team that will compete at the top of the Western Conference.That’s the goal, right?They can score together, but they’re a defensive disaster when paired. They’re both chuckers, too. And there’s no way that Olshey is trading Lillard, his prized draft pick. Further, the Blazers don’t want to get into a position beyond the 2016-17 season where they have to pay both Lillard and McCollum.They’re not the “Splash Brothers.” We know that. But we don’t want them to become the “Cash Brothers.”"
McCollum may be considered a “chucker”, but that could be just what the Celtics need. Though Isaiah Thomas is sporting a scoring average of 21.6 points per game, he’s not nearly as reliable as that figure would suggest. Thomas is an opportunistic scorer more than he is a creator, and when he plays, the Celtics’ offense is constantly working to find him open shots, rather than asking him to create them by himself.
This is a decent offensive strategy, especially since Thomas is the best scorer on Boston’s roster right now, but in late-game situations it’s far from ideal. Good coaches can predict plays, and good defenses can read and adjust too. In those situations, you need a guy who you can hand the ball to and just say “go.”
McCollum can be that guy.
He’s creative, savvy, and most importantly, skilled. McCollum carries himself like the top-dog on the court, but also acts as a leader. He’s a great combo guard who could conceivably be — down the road, of course — the best scorer on a championship-contending team.
Can the same be said for Thomas?
It cannot, but this isn’t to knock Isaiah by any means. Celtics fans owe him eternal thanks for what he’s brought to this team, and he is absolutely deserving of an All-Star appearance this year. Having said that, the instant-offense scoring punch he brings is more desirable as a compliment, hence the reason Boston needs to explore bringing in other talent in the first place.
Now, it’s important to note that a trade for McCollum would be costly. As Canzano said, Blazers general manager Neil Olshey is a big fan of McCollum’s.
Having said that, the column also recognizes the Blazers’ need for a quality big man to pair with Damian Lillard as he enters his prime.
If the Blazers are in the hunt for a young and effective big, why not explore something like this?
On top of what’s shown there, the Miami Heat would receive a top-seven-protected 2016 first-round pick from Boston (via Dallas) and Boston would receive a 2019 second-round pick from Portland.
In this scenario, Portland walks away with Hassan Whiteside, who the Miami Heat are likely to deal anyway due to his impending free agency and a lack of cap space.
The Blazers are way under the salary cap as is, and when the cap rises by a projected $22 million next year, Portland will have more than enough space to re-sign Whiteside to a maximum contract.
On top of that, the Blazers also get Josh Richardson from Miami, a the 2015 40th-overall pick out of Tennessee who could’ve easily gone in the first round.
The Heat are without a first-rounder this year, so the Dallas pick is a big part of this deal for them. Lee’s expiring contract will bring them closer to escaping the luxury tax threshold, and Kelly Olynyk has shown promising flashes this season. He’d be a quality big to bring off the bench now while the Miami staff works to develop him over the next few years.
The Celtics would pick up both Luol Deng and C.J. McCollum, two guys that will bring them closer to the playoffs this season, and one of which (McCollum) they can build around moving forward. Having a veteran like Deng work with Jae Crowder — a similar player — would likely be beneficial for the Cs’ forward too.
Adding McCollum would create what would perhaps be the best guard rotation in the league. Stevens could move Marcus Smart back into the starting lineup for defensive and playmaking purposes, and shift Avery Bradley and Isaiah Thomas to the bench.
Both sets of guards would pair elite offense with elite defense, and Marcus Smart — who the Celtics picked sixth overall in 2014 — would be able to develop as a starter without Stevens having to worry about a lack of scoring from the backcourt. Starting the 21-year-old Smart without compromising Boston’s playoff chances is the ideal option after all.
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The Boston Celtics are locked into averageness, and the only way out is a talent upgrade.
C.J. McCollum can bring that talent to the table.